The title of today’s episode is The God of Abundance. Today’s episode will be a bit different. Yesterday, I was listening to a recording of my prayer group meeting from June 29th. I was not there as I was in Maine celebrating my parents’ 60th wedding anniversary. We begin each prayer group meeting with a short teaching. When I heard the scripture verse she used, I thought it would be a great verse for an episode. As I listened, I realized what my friend Nancy was saying was something we should all hear. So, instead of me talking about the verse this morning, you get the privilege of listening to my friend Nancy. I will come back at the end to talk about my favorite parts and to do the prayer and closing. Music:"Adding the Sun" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
The God of Abundance
2 Corinthians 9:8 "And God is able to provide you with every blessing in abundance so that by always having enough of everything, you may share abundantly in every good work.
Today’s episode will be a bit different. Yesterday, I was listening to a recording of my prayer group meeting from June 29th. I was not there as I was in Maine celebrating my parents’ 60th wedding anniversary. We begin each prayer group meeting with a short teaching. When I heard the scripture verse she used, I thought it would be a great verse for an episode. As I listened, I realized what my friend Nancy was saying was something we should all hear. So, instead of me talking about the verse this morning, you get the privilege of listening to my friend Nancy. I will come back at the end to talk about my favorite parts and to do the prayer and closing. Wasn't that a great teaching? I love that she talked about God’s abundance as we live in a world of scarcity. We worry we won’t have enough money, food, friends, or whatever it is. Paul is telling us right here in this verse that is not how God thinks. He is an abundant God who wants to give us more than we need. Probably my favorite line in the whole teaching is when she said, "We must not let our experiences determine our interpretation of scripture, but scripture determines our experiences.” This is something I will take to prayer and ask the Lord how I can do this as I am not sure, but I know it was a powerful statement.
It was also great how Nancy encourages us to start with those we already know, our current sphere of influence. I also loved that she said, “We are Him in that place with those people.” And finally, I loved that she encouraged us to keep on praying with confidence, praying with thanksgiving, and praying with trust. This was a short teaching, and yet there is so much in it. I have listened to it several times, and I am still hearing new things. I encourage you to listen to it again. Thank you so much, Nancy, for being such a faithful leader in our prayer group and for allowing me to share your teaching so that it can bless other people as well.
Dear Heavenly Father, I ask you to bless all those listening to this episode today. Lord, thank you for Nancy. She is a blessing to our prayer group and to all who know her. Lord, we thank you for being a God of abundance. We thank you for giving us all we need to get through each day. Some days, we wish we had more, and yet we are thankful you give us all that we need. You are amazing, Lord. It is amazing you know exactly what each one of us needs, and it is awe-inspiring the way you fulfill those needs at times. Such as someone miraculously finding $50 on the ground when that was the exact amount she had just asked you for. Thank you for being You, for caring for your children so well. We ask you to help us be more like you, Lord. Help us to be You to those around us. Help us to act in a way that when they see us, they see You. We love you, Lord, and we ask all of this in accordance with your Will and in Jesus’ holy name. Amen!
Thank you so much for joining me on this journey to walk boldly with Jesus. I look forward to meeting you here again on Monday. Remember to check out the link in the show notes if you want information about the retreat. I will have photos of the place we are staying very soon. I hope you are able to join us. It will be an amazing weekend, and it is in just five weekends!! Remember, Jesus loves you, and so do I! Have a blessed weekend. CLICK HERE for retreat info